"You clean this up quickly." The old nun took the sheet and wrapped the child, seeming eager to do something. She glanced at the overturned cup of clear tea on the table, downed it in one gulp, and instructed Zhong Li before preparing to leave.
Seeing her like this, Zhong Li stepped forward and said, "The child is covered in vernix, shouldn't it be washed? And the child's mother is right here. Where are you taking the baby?"
The old nun had been doing this for so long and had never met anyone like Zhong Li. She gave her a look of displeasure and said, "As expected, you're new. Didn't Miao Hui tell you about the rules of Bei Tian An? The women who live here, their children don't belong to them.
Besides, wash what? We don't even know how long it will live."
After speaking, the old nun snorted and prepared to open the door to leave.
Zhong Li stepped forward and grabbed the old nun's clothes, saying, "I told you, this child is not yours. Where are you taking it?"
The old nun froze. She turned back to look at Zhong Li, and just as she was about to question her, her stomach let out a thunderous rumble.
Her expression changed, and she quickly handed the infant in her arms to Zhong Li. She clutched her stomach with one hand and pulled out several bamboo slips from a drawer with the other before running out.
Zhong Li looked at the child in her hands, whose eyes were closed and was squirming and letting out muffled groans. A smile curved her lips.
With the experience of comforting Zhong Wu You before, she was quite skilled at soothing the young infant in her arms. She walked to the basin of warm water, washed off the vernix from the child, re-wrapped it in a clean blanket, and placed it beside Wang Mei.
They say babies recognize their mothers, and soon the infant fell asleep beside Wang Mei.
Afterward, Zhong Li hid the remaining bamboo slips from the drawer and sat at the table with a cup of water.
At the same time, the door was kicked open, and the old nun returned, her face looking somewhat sallow.
Zhong Li stood up, about to speak.
The old nun waved her hand, glanced at the child lying beside Wang Mei, saw that Zhong Li had handled things well, nodded at her, and then scurried out again.
Seeing her condition, Zhong Li picked up the cup the old nun had drunk from and smelled it. The old nun hadn't taken much of the medicine; her reaction was too strong.
However, Zhong Li didn't have time to worry about the old nun who was suffering from diarrhea. Her worried gaze fell on Wang Mei.
Wang Mei was still unconscious, likely due to exhaustion. Zhong Li walked to her side and checked her pulse. Seeing that she was fine, she went to the cabinet, took out a small bag the old nun had placed there, and retrieved the delivery tools and a roll of surgical gut for suturing. She began to treat her perineal wound.
Zhong Li knew that no matter the profession, there were all sorts of people, good and bad, righteous and evil. But when she saw the large gash on Wang Mei's body that had been cut, she knew the old nun had done it intentionally, completely disregarding the woman giving birth.
She frowned in anger and began her work after sterilizing the curved needle.
Fortunately, Wang Mei gave birth in the middle of the night. By the time Zhong Li had finished treating her wounds layer by layer, the sky was just beginning to lighten.
She wiped the sweat from her forehead and stood up to pour a cup of water to moisten her throat. Just as she took a sip, a crisp knock sounded at the door.
Knock, knock, knock.
Zhong Li's drinking motion paused, and she remained silent.
Soon, a voice from outside asked, "Ama, are you inside? Has Miss Wang given birth?"
Zhong Li heard the familiar voice, thought for a moment, stood up, walked to the door, and opened it.
As expected, Miao Hui was standing outside.
"Master Miao Hui," Zhong Li said.
Miao Hui saw the young nun in front of her looked unfamiliar and asked with a wary expression, "Who are you?"
"Chang Qing," Zhong Li replied, deliberately bringing the hat on her head closer to Miao Hui.
Miao Hui glanced at it and confirmed that the embroidery on the young nun's hat was from Bei Tian An. Thinking she might have overthought things, her tone softened slightly as she asked, "Where is Ama?"
Zhong Li could guess that the Ama Miao Hui mentioned was the old nun. She thought for a moment and replied, "Ama is not here."
"Not here? Where did she go?" Miao Hui's confused voice rose again.
Zhong Li replied without thinking, "The privy."
"The privy?" Miao Hui repeated, puzzled.
But before she could figure it out, she felt a push, and a figure began to circle inside the room, as if searching for something but finding nothing.
"Ama, what are you doing?" Miao Hui's displeasure was evident.
When the old nun heard someone calling her, she snapped back to attention and walked over to Miao Hui. Before she could say anything, another rumble sounded in her stomach.
Her face turned green as she clutched her stomach and asked, "The bamboo slips, where are the bamboo slips?"
"Ama, you..."
Before Miao Hui could finish her sentence, the old nun waved her hand to stop her, pointed at Zhong Li, and said, "Master Miao Hui, if you need anything, talk to her. I have to... go to the privy... I must have eaten something wrong yesterday. I'm truly sorry!"
Unable to find the bamboo slips, the old nun rushed out of the room and went to search in other rooms.
Miao Hui endured it for a while before sighing in exasperation, "Knowing you're busy today, you still eat indiscriminately. If you can't control your mouth, it will be your ruin sooner or later!"
Zhong Li stood aside, her head bowed.
After speaking, Miao Hui's gaze fell on Zhong Li. She sized her up several times, seeing her as a wronged concubine, before saying, "Pick up the child and come with me!"
"Yes!" Zhong Li nodded and walked to Wang Mei's side to pick up the child.
Coincidentally, Wang Mei woke up at this moment.
Seeing her child about to be taken away, she used all her strength to protect the baby.
"What are you doing?" Wang Mei asked, her face pale.
Zhong Li saw Miao Hui standing at the door and knew that Wang Mei acting like this would only make things worse. She whispered, "Don't worry, I will..."
"No, you can't take my child away. He is mine, mine!" Wang Mei, having just given birth, had fluctuating emotions and couldn't listen to Zhong Li's explanation. She clung to the child tightly, refusing to let go.
As Zhong Li was about to patiently guide her, Miao Hui heard the commotion, rushed in, and slapped Wang Mei across the face.
Wang Mei froze, and the child beside her began to cry.
"Miss Wang," Miao Hui said, giving Wang Mei a fierce look. "This is not the Wang Manor, nor is it a place for you to run wild. I'm not afraid to tell you that when your father and mother decided to send you to Bei Tian An, the child in your womb no longer belonged to you."
"What did you say?" Wang Mei's face turned ashen.
Miao Hui let out a cold snort and looked at Wang Mei's reaction with scorn. She felt it wasn't enough of a blow and continued, "There's something else I'm not afraid to tell you. There are two midwives in Bei Tian An. Ama is one, and the other is in the next room attending to a pregnant woman with peace of mind. Do you know why I let Ama deliver your baby?"
Hearing Miao Hui's words, especially the last part about "attending with peace of mind," Zhong Li already had a rough guess about Wang Mei's future fate.
She shook her head at Wang Mei, wanting to tell her to hold back for now.
To her surprise, Wang Mei was stubborn and unwilling to listen until she hit a wall. She glared at Miao Hui and asked, "Why?"
Miao Hui burst out laughing and lifted Wang Mei's pale little face with one hand. "Ama only cares about the child's survival during delivery, not the mother's. Understand?"
With that, Miao Hui snatched the child from Wang Mei's stunned gaze, turned, and left.
Zhong Li looked at the now soul-lost Wang Mei, remembering the scissors the Ama had used on her. She wanted to say something comforting, but hearing the child's cries fading into the distance, she couldn't afford to hesitate. She grabbed Wang Mei's shoulder forcefully, left her with a "Wait for me," and quickly followed behind Miao Hui.